Tuesday, January 20, 2009

This is the second pack in the contest. The first pack had an A-Rod and a Helton and a total of 59 points. Let's see if this one can keep up the pace.

Milton Bradley = 1 pointAnother member of the All-Time Best Names in MLB team. He garnered his first All-Star selection last year, and also received MVP votes for the first time in his career. He finished 17th, though, so no points for that. He is probably best known for blowing out his knee while yelling at an umpire. Well, for that and for being named Milton Bradley.

Joe Crede = 1 pointCrede also made his first All-Star team last year. He won a Silver Slugger in 2006, but no points for that. He's a slightly below average bat at 3B, and is currently a free agent. He's only 31 this season. Surely some team can use him.

Woody Williams = 1 pointFor someone who did not pitch a full season in the bigs until age 30, he had a very nice career. 2216 IP, 132-116 record. He retired when the Astros cut him during spring training last year. Made one All-Star team: in 2003 when he was 12-3 with a 3.01 ERA at the break. He went 6-6, 5.23 the rest of the way.

Preston Wilson - Gold = 1 pointOur string of 1-pointers continues with Wilson, who made an All-Star team in 2003 and finished 16th in the MVP voting on the strength of a .282/36/141/14 season. In 1999 he finished 2nd to Scott Williamson for ROY. He played last for the Cardinals in 2007, and is currently a free agent.

Todd Helton - Award Winner - 2002 NL Gold Glove = 14 pointsAnother card of Helton, who we picked up in the first pack as well. Nothing to add here except that he was once a QB at the University of Tennessee, and was ahead of Peyton Manning on the depth chart. That reminds of the first episode of The Wonder Years, when the narrator says that when he was twelve years old he was a better quarterback than John Elway. Then he admits that Elway was five at the time.

Los Angeles Dodgers = 0 pointsNo points for team cards. The 2002 Dodgers won 92 games and finished third in their division. The DBacks won 98, the Giants 95. Shawn Green had a monster year, hitting .285/42/114 and finishing fifth in the MVP voting.

Cliff Floyd = 1 pointThe one-point wonders continue after our brief break for a team card and a Helton. Floyd made the All-Star team in 2001. He received a few MVP votes that season, finishing 22nd. He finished 26th in 2005. He is a free agent right now, after playing in 80 games for the Rays last year.

Aaron Heilman / Jose Reyes = 5 pointsOur second nice Prospects card in two packs. Heilman gets no points, but he's an established major league reliever. Reyes has made two All-Star teams, and has been on the MVP ballot in four different seasons. He's only cracked the top ten once, in 2006 when he finished 7th after a .300/19/81/64 season.

Matt Stairs = 0 pointsProfessional hitter. Didn't get a real chance at a MLB starting job until he was 29, but he still has 252 home runs. He only got MVP votes once, in 1999 when he went .258/38/102 for the A's and finished 17th. He hit a huge home run for the Phillies in the NLCS last year. He coaches hockey in the off-season, but I bet you could tell that just by looking at him.

Dan Plesac = 3 pointsPlesac made three straight All-Star teams from '87 to '89, and even finished 22nd in the MVP voting in '88, though he did not receive any Cy Young votes that year. He was a good reliever for a long time, playing until age 41 and finishing with 1072 IP and an ERA+ of 117.

That's a lot of dinks and dunks, and one big blast from Helton, for a total of 27 points. Through two packs our point total stands at 86. Get those guesses in to me before the final pack is posted Sunday.